


things we lost in the shatterdome

by deerie



Category: Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: Domestic, F/M, Gen, M/M, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-16
Updated: 2013-11-16
Packaged: 2018-01-01 17:12:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1046408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deerie/pseuds/deerie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>When Hermann walks into the lab after the long break he indulgently took for dinner, he doesn’t expect to see what he does.</i>
</p><p>  <i>When one works in the same vicinity as Newton Geiszler, however, one should learn to expect everything. </i></p><p>  <i>“Where, pray tell,” Hermann sighs deeply, “are your pants?”</i></p>
            </blockquote>





	things we lost in the shatterdome

**Author's Note:**

> So! Here is my first foray into the Pacific Rim fandom and like my entire fandom career, my contribution is utterly ridiculous. :) I was a bit handwavey when it came to ages and timelines, but I hope you enjoy anyway!

Newt doesn’t get it. He says as much out loud. 

Mako drops her tray down on the table next to him and asks, “What are you talking about?”

She’s sixteen and Newt’s been trying to encourage her rebellious phase. It’s not quite working in the way that he’d hope. Mostly she just comes down to his lab and sasses him. 

He gestures across the room where Hermann sits next to none other than Chuck Hansen.

“Do you think this is real beef?” Mako asks him. 

“No way,” he says absently. He waves his hands in the air and says, “I mean, I've got theories, okay.”

Chuck pushes the little cup of fruit from his tray toward Hermann. 

“Are we still talking about the food?”

“Food?” Newt is so confused. “Why are you talking about food? I’m talking about Hermann and Chuck. It’s just so weird, you know?”

Mako leans back and hums under her breath. She looks over to where Hermann and Chuck sit. Chuck says something low and Hermann smiles his weird not-smile and nods. “Huh,” she says.

“I mean, Hermann is fourteen years older than Chuck. And it’s _Hermann_ , that’s weird all on its own. Of all the weird combinations of people in the Shatterdome, this is the weirdest one.”

Newt leans over the table a bit and cranes his neck to see what Chuck and Hermann are up to now. Hermann scribbles something on a scrap of paper and Chuck looks like Christmas has come early. 

“That’s a bad argument,” Mako says. Her newest tutor is really into logic. Mako just appreciates getting to use the things she learns in her lessons in her day-to-day life. She smiles serenely as she says, “You’re basically the same age as Hermann and yet here we are.”

“Hey!” Newton cries. “I’ll have you know that I am half a year younger than Hermann is. But personality-wise, he is a million years older than I am.”

“It doesn’t help that you have the maturity of a eight year old.”

“Sixteen year old kids do not get to cast judgments, Mako. Your brain isn't even finished developing yet.”

Mako wrinkles her nose and takes a bite of her probably-not-beef.

Herc, having overheard the part of their conversation about his son, stops by their table. He reaches down and plucks the brownie off of Newt’s place. 

Newt opens his mouth to protest, but withers in place when Herc looks down at him. “No, you can totally have that brownie, it’s cool.”

“To answer your question,” Herc says, “I think their dickery cancels each other’s out.”

“Hermann’s not a dick,” Newt defends halfheartedly. Hermann’s a little bit of a dick. K-Science bros have got to stick together, though.

“Right, and Chuck’s a saint,” Herc says. He clears his throat as he walks away with Newt’s stolen brownie, “Gottlieb’s tutoring Chuck in mathematics. Also, I think he may be using operant conditioning on my son.”

Newt stares mournfully in Herc’s direction for a few moments. “That’s less scandalous than I was hoping for. That’s basically a regular day in K-Science. Hermann’s been trying to get me to turn down my music for years.”

“Would you help me dye my hair later?” Mako asks, half-serious and half to change the subject.

“Sure, and give Pentecost a real reason to kill me?” Newt scoffs.

However, Newt remembers the oath he made that night he got wasted on the Russian’s homemade vodka. The Kaidanovskys would be so disappointed in him if he failed to continue to foster Mako’s rebellious streak. 

He tears his gaze away from Hermann and Chuck - it’s still the weirdest friendship to ever grace the halls of the Shatterdome, no matter what Herc says - and looks at Mako for the first time since she sat down at his table. 

Mako raises one eyebrow up ever so slightly.

“Aw, shit,” Newt says. He dares anyone not to absolutely crumble under the force of that hopeful face. “Yeah, let’s do it.” 

 

***

 

A small crowd gathers around the entrance to the Kwoon, so of course Tendo has to check it out. His plan had been to head back to his room and try to get in both a call to Allison and a nap before his next shift, but he figures he has enough time for a detour. He can shave a couple minutes off of his nap, no biggie. He can always have an extra cup of coffee. 

He slides around the crowd and finds himself looking at - well, he’s not sure exactly what he’s looking at. “What’s going on, brother?”

Raleigh shushes him out of the side of his mouth, eyes never straying from Mako’s. Mako stares back at him without blinking. 

A couple of people mill around the edges of the room, so Tendo sidles up to them, hands in his pockets, and jerks his head toward the pair on the mat.

A woman steps closer to him. Tendo is pretty sure she’s one of the Australian engineers. She leans in and whispers, “Staring contest. Boy, if I got the chance to look into Raleigh’s eyes, I would never look away.”

The corner of Mako’s mouth jerks up when she hears this. 

Raleigh sighs and says, “God, you’re beautiful.”

Mako’s smirk widens significantly. 

“How long has this been going on for?” Tendo asks, curiosity coloring his voice.

“Just a coupla minutes.” 

Raleigh sighs again and gazes adoringly at Mako. Mako drums her fingers on her knee.

Tendo watches with a sort of sick fascination. He cocks his head and says, “Is there a pool?”

The engineer grins and says, “You want in? Better hurry before it’s over.”

“Put me down for two cups of good coffee on Raleigh sneezing.”

Raleigh’s nose twitches and he swears, “Dammit, Choi.”

Tendo laughs just as Raleigh sneezes. Mako lifts her arms up in victory and shouts, “Ha!”

The engineer groans when Tendo asks her what he’s won. “I was looking forward to that coffee. Let’s see, Dr. Geiszler put in a DVD, I put down a can of orange concentrate I got my hands on, and Yasmine put in a half bar of chocolate. She was going to put in the whole bar but then she ate half of it.”

Tendo clasps his hands together and shakes them in the air beside his head. He grins and says, “Tell you what, you come by LOCCENT sometime and I’ll get you that good cup of coffee.”

The engineer grins and extends a fist for Tendo to bump. “Sounds good.”

 

***

 

When Hermann walks into the lab after the long break he indulgently took for dinner, he doesn’t expect to see what he does.

When one works in the same vicinity as Newton Geiszler, however, one should learn to expect everything. 

“Where, pray tell,” Hermann sighs deeply, “are your pants?”

Newton spins around in surprise, shirttails flying, and shouts, “Hermann! Man, you were gone a long time, where did you go?”

Hermann pinches the bridge of his nose. Newton’s shirt isn’t even buttoned up all the way - all those tattoos out on display, it’s positively indecent.

“You’re never gonna believe what happened! You know those kaiju intestines I got the other day?” Newton mimes something blowing up with his hands. “They exploded on me!”

Newton pushes a hand back through his slick hair. “Totally just got out of the emergency shower, gotta go find pants.”

Hermann tamps down the flare of concern he feels all at once, willing Newton not to feel it too. Ever since their ill-fated drift, they’ve been experiencing - well, Newton’s been calling it low-level telepathy but Hermann knows that’s bollocks. If anything, the drift has made them more in tune with each other. “Aren’t you going to go down to medical?”

“Nah, man, why?” Newton grimaces. “You worried about me, baby?”

Newton swings closer as Hermann rolls his eyes and audibly sighs. He taps his cane on the floor twice, an empty nervous gesture. Newton has this - this lascivious smirk crawling across his face.

“Please do not call me that, Dr. Geiszler.”

Newton crows out a laugh and says, “That isn’t a ‘no’, Dr. Gottlieb.” 

“Yes, well, you know very well my stance on the matter of… you,” he finishes. It’s not entirely what he meant to say, but well - it works, even if it’s entirely too sentimental. 

Newton’s grin eases into something softer. “I’m okay. My jeans, on the other hand, are trashed. Headed for the trash, even.”

“Good riddance,” Hermann sniffs. “Maybe you can wear some of those dress pants I know are lurking in the back of your closet. You know, there’s nothing wrong with some professionalism in the workplace.”

“Herm, if I had been wearing those pants today, I probably wouldn’t have any skin left on my legs. Say what you want about jeans, but acid surprisingly doesn’t eat through them very fast.”

Hermann’s eyes must widen considerably because Newton quickly backtracks, arms wide, “Dude, no, I’m okay. Look at me, I’m totally in one piece.”

Hermann does look, eyes tracking across bare skin, and says, “Yes, well. You should still go to medical.”

Newton starts buttoning his shirt from the bottom up. By the time he’s finished, at least one button is in the wrong hole. Hermann’s fingers itch to fix it, but Newton’s got his thinking face on. Newton’s hand comes up to clasp lightly around Hermann’s wrist, adjusting his hold when Hermann tightens his grip on his cane. In an attempt to placate Hermann, he says, "Look, I’ll go to medical if it means that much to you, but! But you gotta come with me.”

Hermann finds himself nodding without meaning to, so he scoffs - just for old time’s sake - and says, “Of course, Newton.”


End file.
